The Rat Cultivator

Chapter 90: Qi Condensation Mid-Stage

One hour later.

Wu Yuan opened his eyes. The breakthrough was complete.

Inside his Dantian, the landscape had changed completely. His Demon Power, which had previously existed as ninety-nine individual, wispy strands, was gone.

In its place flowed ten thick, condensed streams of power.

Quantitatively, he had less. But qualitatively? The difference was heaven and earth. The momentum of these ten streams circulating through his body felt like a heavy, crushing tide compared to the light mist of before.

Wu Yuan examined the new energy, doing the math in his head.

“I successfully compressed my energy at a ratio of ten to one,” he murmured, his voice trembling with a mix of shock and delight. “I thought I’d need at least fifteen strands to forge a single stream of Mid-Stage power.”

In the cultivation world, the ‘Compression Ratio’ was the ultimate test of quality.

For a standard Demon Beast with average bloodline purity, it typically took twenty-five strands of Early-Stage energy to compress into a single stable stream of Mid-Stage energy.

If a beast needed more than twenty-five—say, thirty or forty—the breakthrough would fail. Their energy was simply too diffuse, like trying to pack smoke into a brick.

Exceptions existed, of course. Beasts with tyrannically strong bodies could brute-force the compression, using their flesh as a hydraulic press to crush low-quality Spiritual Qi into a solid state. This was the path of Body Cultivators.

But Wu Yuan had done it with finesse.

“According to the Winged Tiger, even the elites of his clan—those with the purest bloodlines—need about seventeen or eighteen strands to form a stream.”

“And Bibo mentioned that in the East Sea Dragon Palace, only the True Dragons and high-tier Flood Dragons with Rank 3 bloodlines can achieve a ten-to-one ratio.”

Wu Yuan compared the numbers mentally.

“Thinking with my butt, I know that twenty-five is a passing grade—a C-minus.”

“My ten-to-one ratio? That’s at least an A-plus. Any higher, and I’d be competing with the Golden Core heirs born with silver spoons in their mouths.”

It was a brutal reality. A demon with a 25:1 ratio would see a four-fold increase in power density after breaking through.

Wu Yuan, with his 10:1 ratio, saw a ten-fold increase.

The strong get stronger. The weak get eaten. That was the law.

Wu Yuan puffed out his chest, basking in his own magnificence.

“I, Wu Yuan, have reached this height today entirely due to my unparalleled talent and unrelenting hard work!” he declared to the empty room. “This is the crystallization of my sweat and shocking wisdom!”

Buzz.

The Karma Pearl in his consciousness suddenly vibrated, interrupting his narcissistic monologue.

Wu Yuan jumped, nearly biting his tongue.

“Treasure! I haven’t forgotten you!” he blurted out instinctively. “You… you helped too! Your contribution was… significant!”

The pearl didn’t react further.

Wu Yuan let out a breath, wiping imaginary sweat from his forehead. “Right. It’s just a tool. It doesn’t have feelings.”

He focused on the new information flowing from the pearl. The breakthrough had upgraded its function.

Previously, when he searched for items like the ‘Moon Spirit Grass,’ the pearl provided text-based GPS coordinates. It told him where it was, but not what it looked like. That was why he hadn’t known the grass was in a mudflat until he arrived.

Now, the data stream included visuals.

A crisp image of the target and its immediate surroundings projected into his mind.

“Video surveillance,” Wu Yuan grinned, scratching his head. “That’s a nice surprise. Now I can scout for traps without risking my neck.”

He turned his attention back to his own body stats.

Physique: Minimal improvement. Since he was already a Mid-Stage Body Refiner, his Qi Cultivation catching up didn’t add much raw muscle power. However, his control over his Blood Qi was significantly more refined.

Lifespan: Increased from 50 years to 80 years.

“Still short compared to humans,” Wu Yuan mused. A human at the Qi Condensation stage lived to about 140. But demons played the long game; their lifespans scaled harder at higher realms. “By the time I reach Perfection, I should hit 150.”

Divine Sense: This was the jackpot.

His sensory range had exploded from 30 zhang to a staggering 80 zhang.

“That’s double the range of a normal Mid-Stage Demon Beast,” Wu Yuan calculated excitedly. “It’s even twenty zhang more than a human cultivator at the same level!”

Not only was the range greater, but the resolution was higher. He could split his focus into multiple threads, controlling artifacts and spells with terrifying precision.

“So,” Wu Yuan summed up. “My Demon Power is ten times purer. My Divine Sense has tripled in utility. My spellcasting and artifact control have skyrocketed.”

“Conservatively speaking, I am twenty times stronger than before.”

He paused, doing the mental gymnastics of a true braggart.

“Let’s round up. I’m fifty times stronger.”

Several days later.

Bibo approached Wu Yuan in the main cavern. The old beaver looked solemn, his gray fur bristling with nervous energy.

“King,” Bibo bowed deeply. “I wish to attempt my breakthrough.”

Wu Yuan immediately set down the jade slip he was reading. He stood up and placed a heavy paw on Bibo’s shoulder.

“Good. It is time.”

With a wave of his hand, Wu Yuan retrieved a glowing, serpentine fruit from his inventory.

“Take this Snake Spirit Fruit. Eat it during the compression phase. It contains a burst of pure spiritual energy that will give you the push you need.”

“Also, don’t use your own den. Go to the Spirit Stone Mine. I’ve cleared a chamber for you deep underground. The ambient Qi there is far denser.”

Bibo’s eyes welled up with tears. He fell to his knees, pressing his forehead against the cool stone floor.

“Thank you, King!” Bibo choked out. “Your kindness is heavy as a mountain. I, Bibo, will remember this forever. In the future, I will go through fire and water for Little Green Mountain without hesitation!”

Bibo didn’t waste time. He took the fruit and hurried to the mine, constructing a simple cultivation hut in the designated chamber.

Wu Yuan stood outside the tunnel, his expression darkening once Bibo was gone.

“This is going to be hard,” Wu Yuan whispered, his brow furrowing. “He is old. His Blood Qi is in decline. The risk of death is far higher for him than for a young demon.”

Time ticked by.

Wu Yuan stood guard, his expanded Divine Sense monitoring the fluctuations deep within the mine.

An hour passed.

The first step is done, Wu Yuan noted. He has successfully replenished his Demon Power.

Bibo had decades of accumulation. Converting ambient Qi into raw Demon Power was easy for him. His Dantian was full.

Now comes the hard part. Compression.

Suddenly, the rhythmic waves of energy coming from the hut turned chaotic. The air in the tunnel began to vibrate with a discordant hum.

Wu Yuan sighed heavily. “He’s failing.”

Inside the hut, Bibo was shaking violently.

Sweat poured down his face. His control was slipping. The strands of Demon Power he was trying to squeeze together were rebelling, leaking out of his pores like steam from a cracked pipe.

His body was too old. His vessel wasn’t airtight.

Bibo gritted his teeth, a look of bitter despair flashing across his face.

“I knew this would happen,” he mumbled, his voice straining against the pressure. “I am dying of old age. Just having the chance to try… that should have been enough.”

“But…”

His claws dug into the ground, drawing blood.

“I am not resigned! I refuse to fade away!”

“If I am to die, I will die on the path of Ascension, not in my bed!”

A savage light ignited in the old beaver’s eyes.